Twilight Struggle is my favorite game. I have previously reviewed the 2nd edition, the Chinese Civil War variant from C3i #21, and the Late War Scenario from C3i #19. Between face to face play, wargameroom.com, and ACTS, I've played over 100 games in 2009.

This review is about the recently released Deluxe Edition from GMT Games. The game was designed by Jason Matthews and Ananda Gupta, and the original version was released in 2005.

It is a 2 player game, and typically takes 2-3 hours to play a full game.

Theme

TS is a game about the Cold War between the USA and USSR covering the period from 1945-1989. While it's true the two superpowers never directly fired a shot at one another in that time, there were plenty of proxy wars where funding and weapons were supplied to the ideologically favored faction. This game simulates the ideological conflict on a global scale.

Components

The components for the new deluxe edition have been thoroughly revamped from the 2nd edition.

The game features a new, redesigned map with a gorgeous linen finish, mounted on a very sturdy board. Some nice new features have been added to the map, such as set up information being printed right on the board (see photo), and the space race track has been revamped slightly - now instead of "The Eagle/Bear" has landed being the end of the track, with the space shuttle and the international space station taking up the final two slots.

The map also has the Chinese Civil War variant box printed right on it (more on that below).

The counters are slightly larger and have nicely rounded corners. They're roughly half again as thick as the standard GMT counters, but very sturdy and will stand up to repeated play. They are not as thick as most Euro games, but since there will be times you'll need to stack these counters, it's my opinion that they're just right.

The cards are of the standard excellent quality we've come to expect and enjoy from GMT.

If I had to quibble about something, it would be the dice included in the deluxe set. They aren't as pretty as the ones that came in my 2nd edition/3rd printing set. They are, however, perfectly functional.

The rule book is clear and concise, and has been updated to include both the optional Chinese Civil War variant (form C3i #21) and the Late War Scenario (from C3i #19).

Finally, the deluxe box comes with an insert. I'm of mixed minds about it. On the one hand, if you're like me and put your components in bags, the insert works beautifully. If you're going to be making tuck boxes for the cards and wanted to use a Plano box for your counters, or even a counter tray, you'll likely be ditching the insert - otherwise, it won't fit!

Rules and Game Play

If you're an experienced TS player, you can skip this part and head straight for the Variations on a Theme and New Cards sections. If not, read on!

Twilight Struggle is a card driven game played over a maximum of 10 turns. The game may end sooner (and frequently does).

Twilight Struggle is fundamentally a game about area control. There are six geopolitical regions on the map: Europe (split into Eastern and Western Europe subregions), Asia (including the Southeast Asia subregion), the Middle East, Africa, Central America, and South America. Within each region are countries that have a stability number, representing how stable the government tends to be.

Having control of countries helps determine whether you have presence, domination, or control of a region, which in turn helps you earn victory points.

Within each region, there are a number of battleground countries, which are considered key to the region. They are distinguished by having their name in white on a dark blue background and their stability number is red.

Victory Points and Winning

Twilight Struggle uses a push-pull scoring victory track, with the scoring marker starting on 0. Every time you score points, you move the scoring marker in your direction. Victory in Twilight Struggle can occur in one of the following ways:

1. if a player gets to 20+ VP at any time, they win2. if the DEFCON goes to 1, then the non-phasing player wins (more on that below)3. if a player controls Europe and Europe Scoring is played, they win automatically (more on that below)4. if someone plays the Wargames card as an event and ends the game, whoever has the higher VP total wins (more on that below)5. if none of the above happens, the winner is determined after final scoring at the end of turn 10. Whoever has the higher VP total wins.

A player earns victory points in the following ways:

1. from scoring cards 2. from the Space Race 3. from various cards in the deck4. from their opponents not meeting the military ops requirement for the turn (more on that below)5. final scoring (if applicable)

Ok, now that I know the victory conditions, how do I play?

Twilight Struggle is a card driven game. There is a deck of cards, split into three periods: early war, mid war, late war. Each game turn represents approximately four years of time, and turns 1-3 are the early war, 4-7 the mid war, and 8-10 the late war. In turns 1-3 only the early war cards are used, the mid war cards are added for the deal in turn 4, and the late war cards added for the deal in turn 8. It's entirely possible to be using early war cards in the late war period.

Each player places starting influence as noted in the set up sheet. Conveniently, the deluxe edition map has the starting influence marked on the map.

In addition to the influence marked on the map, the USSR player adds 6 influence anywhere in Eastern Europe, and then the US player adds 7 anywhere in Western Europe.

The DEFCON is set to 5, the turn marker is put on the 1, the space race markers go into the start box, and then the action phase marker is placed red side up on the 1 spot.

The Soviet player is also given a special card to start the game - the China Card.

The China card is special in that it's never considered part of either player's hand, but it can be used by whoever has current possession of it. It starts with the Soviet player, but if they use it, it is passed, face down (and therefore unavailable to play) to the US player. At the end of the turn, the card is flipped face up, and it is then available for play on the next turn. The US player would then keep the China card until they use it, passing it face down back to the Soviet player. It's particularly useful in Asia (for obvious reasons), but can be used as a 4-ops card for any purpose during the action rounds for any purpose including the space race. However, as it's not considered part of your hand, you cannot (nor be compelled to) use it to satisfy a forced discard.

The game begins with the DEFCON at 5, so it cannot be improved. Then each player is dealt 8 cards (9 in the mid and late war).

Each card in the game has an event on it and a number representing the operations value of the card. There are also scoring cards for every region, which are described separately in more detail.

Here is a set of sample cards:

The first card has a split star in the top left corner. This means it can be used as an event by either player, and has an ops value of 1. It is also a one time event (noted by the *); if it is used as an event, it is removed from the game.

The second card has a white star. This means the US player can use it for ops or as an event. The USSR player however, can only use it for ops and it will trigger the event (unless played into the space race). It has an ops value of 2. Like the previous card, it's a one time event (as noted by the *), but the red underline means it has lasting effects in the game. In this instance, there is another event in the game that cannot happen unless this is already in effect.

The third card has a red star. This means the USSR player can use it for ops or an event. The USA player however, can only use it for ops and it will trigger the event (unless played into the space race). It has an ops value of 2. It can happen again and again as the event does not have an *.

The fourth card is a scoring card. Note the red text at the bottom MAY NOT BE HELD. This means the player MUST play the card in the current turn. It has no ops value and cannot be used for any operational purpose, only as a scoring event.

Players then secretly select and simultaneously reveal an event they want to have happen in the headline phase.

The headline phase sets the tone for the current turn. The event you select should help you, as much as possible, for the rest of the turn. In other words, after examining your hand and looking at the board, pick a headline you think will help you the most this turn. Note that you can play your opponent's event or a scoring card in the headline phase.

After the headlines are resolved, the action rounds begin. The Soviet player always goes first. This means the Soviets can best take advantage of a headline event (usually), but the Americans will have the last word in the turn.

What can I do with my cards?

Cards can be used in the following ways: As an event. You can play events of your colour or events applicable to both (split star). The effects are applied, and then the card is discarded. Remember that events with a * are removed from the game!

As operations. If you play a card with your opponent's event on it (never your event or an event applicable to both), then you will be triggering the event on the card! However, you get to decide if the event happens before or after you use the operations value of the card.

A card's operations points are all used for ONE of the following things:

adding influence into countries on the board. You can only add influence to countries where you already have influence, or to countries adjacent to ones where you already have influence. You can always add influence to countries adjacent to your home (e.g. the USA can always add influence to Japan, Mexico, Cuba, or Canada as they are all adjacent).

To control a country, you need to have more influence than your opponent and enough influence be greater than or equal to the stability number.

In this photo, the USSR controls France, the US controls Portugal and Morocco (US influence of 5 less USSR influence of 2 = 3 for the US, which is equal to Morocco's stability), and Algeria has influence from both players but is controlled by neither.

Note that you cannot cascade influence placement. In the photo above, the Soviets could place influence in Italy, but then could not then immediately place influence into Austria.

attempt a realignment. You can try to reduce/remove your opponent's influence in a country with a realignment. Realignments are opposed rolls subject to modifiers.

Say for instance, using the photo above, that the Americans wanted to try an realign Algeria. The USSR player would get the following die roll modifiers: +1 for having more influence than the Americans (2-1 in this case), +1 for having a friendly controlled country adjacent (France) for a net drm of +2.

The Americans would have +1 for having an enemy controlled country adjacent (Morocco), for a net drm of +1.

Both players then roll and the loser removes the net difference from the affected country. Note that it's possible for you to lose your own influence in a country if you roll badly.

You are also constrained by the DEFCON status about where realignments are possible.

attempt a coup. You may use the operations value of the card to attempt a coup in any country on the board where your opponent has influence, subject to DEFCON restrictions as noted above.

You roll a d6 and add your card's operations value. You subtract from this total the target country's doubled stability value to get a net result. If it's 0 or less, nothing happens. If it's 1 or more, then you subtract your opponent's influence 1 for 1. If your opponent's influence is completely removed, any leftover points add influence for you!

Two things of note with a coup. First, you add the number of ops points to your "required military ops" track. Second, if the country you attempted a coup on is a battleground country, you degrade the DEFCON by 1.

as a space race attempt. If you have a card that you don't want to play (for whatever reason), you can attempt to advance yourself on the space race. This is also the one time that using a card with your opponent's event does NOT trigger it!

To play on the space race, you need a card with the required minimum number of ops points (see the track below), and then you roll a die. If you roll in the range specified, you advance. If you don't, the card is wasted. However, success is rewarded!

For boxes with a number, e.g. 2/1, the first person to get there earns the number before the slash in victory points, and the second player would get the value after the slash in victory points.

For the other boxes, the player earns that benefit unless and until their opponent also reaches that box. For example, you can play two cards into the space race as long as you have reached "animals in space" and your opponent has not.

Scoring. There is one scoring card for each region, and a special scoring card for Southeast Asia. This latter card is a one time event. All the other scoring cards can and will reappear as the deck gets reshuffled.

Scoring affects both players. When a scoring card for a region is played, both players check to see whether they have presence, domination or control of the region.

Presence means you control at least one country in the region.

Domination means you control more countries than your opponent and control more battleground countries than your opponent. You must also control at least one non-battleground country.

Control means you control more countries than your opponent and ALL battleground countries in the region.

You only score your highest level, so if you have domination, you don't also get presence points.

The score is the sum of your scoring level (presence, domination, control), +1 per battleground country controlled, +1 per country controlled that is adjacent to your opponent's superpower (e.g. the US controlling Romania would be +1 for the US in Europe scoring), minus your opponent's score (level, battlegrounds, adjacency to superpower).

You then move the VP marker as many spaces as required.

It is possible to tie on any scoring card, and it's always great if you can score a region where your opponent doesn't even have presence.

Unless someone has scored an automatic victory, players alternate playing action cards until the requisite number of actions have taken place, 6 in the early war, 7 in the mid and late war. If you have no cards to play (because of an event, or you were forced to discard cards), then you are out of luck! Your opponent may continue playing cards assuming they have cards available to play that action.

Once the action round is over, both players check to see if they have satisfied the military operations requirement. You need to have spent as many military operations points as the current DEFCON level.

Example: if the DEFCON is 4, your required military operations is 4. If you spent less than 4, your opponent gets the difference in victory points!

The only way to earn required military ops is by coup attempts, or from event cards.

The China card is then flipped face up (assuming it was used this turn), the turn marker is advanced, and the entire process is repeated.

Did I win?

As mentioned above, there are several ways to win.

if a player gets to 20+ VP at any time, they win. This can happen as a result of a scoring card, an event card, or your opponent not making their required military operations.

if the DEFCON goes to 1. If the DEFCON goes to 1, that means war has broken out between the US and USSR, and the game ends immediately. The phasing player is held responsible for this, and loses.

There are several ways for the DEFCON to hit 1. Examples include: an event card drops the DEFCON; the player triggers an opponent's event that allows said opponent to attempt a coup in a battleground country (so yes, you can lose because you did something that let your opponent launch a coup); you trigger an event that allows (or perhaps even forces) your opponent to play a card that drops the DEFCON.

if a player controls all the battleground countries in Europe and the Europe Scoring card comes up, then that player wins outright, no matter what the victory point chart says.

Europe was the core region of contention during the Cold War, and as such, controlling it represents a massive ideological victory. It's also very difficult to achieve.

There is a late war event card called Wargames. If the DEFCON is 2 and the card is played as an event, then 6 VP are awarded to the opponent. At that point, the player who triggered the event can end the game. Whoever is ahead on the VP track is the winner.

If none of the above happens, the winner is determined after final scoring at the end of turn 10.

Any cards with enduring effects are now ignored, (e.g. Shuttle Diplomacy).

Every region on the map is scored. The holder of the China Card is given 1 VP.

Whoever is ahead after all regions are scored is the winner.

While it's possible to have a score of 0 and a tie, this is an extremely rare occurrence. I've only experienced it once in over 160 games.

Variations on a Theme

The original incarnation of Twilight Struggle had balance issues, especially among players of uneven experience. Anecdotal evidence says the Soviets won over 60% of the time. To fix this, there have been a few variants.

The most common unofficial variant is the one used by the Internet Twilight Struggle Leage (ITSL) run by Bruce Wigdor over at wargameroom.com. The variant allows the US 3 additional influence to be placed in Europe after initial set up. This leads to a roughly 50% win rate for the Americans.

A similar variant is used by the TS ladder run by Pat Jacobsen over on the Automated Card Tracking System (ACTS). This also uses an additional 3 influence for the US, with the rule that it can cannot allow "over control" of a country (i.e. you can't take West Germany from 4 to 5 as it's already controlled at 4). The current ratio there is 144-135 for the USSR (51.6% win rate).

Another unofficial but popular method is bidding, where you bid how many influence you'll give the American side to play the Soviets. This is probably best done between experienced players who know their relative skill levels.

Finally, there was the Chinese Civil War Variant introduced by Jason Matthews in C3i #21. This variant, reviewed here, forced the Soviets to invest 3ip to get the China Card. In my 35 games using it, the USSR trails the Americans 16-19, which is pretty close to even.

New Cards

One of the exciting features of the deluxe edition of Twilight Struggle is the addition of new cards. These cards are labeled optional, and one does not have to use them. If you do use them, you should not also use the Chinese Civil War variant.

The new cards are:

The Cambridge Five: This Soviet event forces the Americans to reveal any scoring cards in their hand. Assuming the Americans have any, the Soviets may then choose one scoring region among those revealed and add 1 influence to any country within it. Can only be played in the early and mid war.

This card adds a nice touch of espionage to the game. Knowing the Americans have no scoring cards in their hand is every bit as useful information as knowing which regions are coming up, if any.

Special Relationship: US event. Pre-NATO, this allows the Americans to add 1 influence to any country adjacent to the UK. Post NATO, it lets the Americans add 2 influence to any Western European country and give them 2VP to boot!

This card is a nice remedy for Suez and DeGaulle with respect to France, and just generally useful otherwise. Errata has been posted to GMT's site for this card - it's not supposed to be an underlined event as it can recur.

NORAD: US event. If the US controls Canada (easier now that Canada starts with 2 US influence), then any action round where the DEFCON goes to 2 results in the US adding 1 influence to any country on the board where the US already has influence. Cancelled by Quagmire.

This card struck me as odd, but as soon as I used an ABM Treaty to reduce the DEFCON to 3 and attempted a coup, the beauty of this little card came clear to me. The description above is from the errata posted at GMT's site.

Che: USSR event. Che can attempt a coup in any non-battleground country (using the card's ops value) in Africa, Central America or South America. If any US influence is removed, then Che can immediately attempt another coup against another non-battleground country (can be in a different region than the original).

This card didn't help me in the first game I played as both times it came out, there were no non-battleground countries eligible. However, given how easily the balance between presence and domination can be shifted in the three regions, this can be a pretty powerful card.

Our Man in Tehran: One time US event. If the US controls at least one Middle Eastern country, then they may draw the top five cards from the draw deck, and discard any of them (after showing them to the Soviet player). The rest (if any) are replaced in the draw deck, which then gets reshuffled.

This card is fantastic for the American player, and playing this at the right time can flush the draw deck of things you just don't want to have happen. It's key to remember rule 4.3 that the draw deck is reshuffled as soon as you run out of cards, so there will always be a draw deck to pull cards from - an easy mistake to make, since normally one never draws from the deck except to deal cards at the start of each turn.

Yuri and Samantha: One time Soviet event. The USSR gets 1VP for every American coup attempt in the current turn.

A sweet headline card to play if you know that the Americans need to play coup attempts in Africa, South America and Central America.

AWACS sale to Saudis: One time American event. US received 2 influence in Saudi Arabia, and Muslim Revolution can no longer be played as an event.

This late war card might be the last chance for the Americans to break into a USSR controlled or dominated Middle East.

In addition to these new cards, Aldrich Ames Remix replaces the original Ames card. It's now 3 ops instead of 4 and has a much milder effect - the US has to put their hand face up for the entire turn, and the Soviets can pick one card to discard. Given that one of my most dramatic victories was thanks to Ames, I'm kinda nostalgic for the old Ames already, but I think it was probably the right thing to do.

Exploring Further

The Cold War has inspired many movies and books, too many to list here, but I have a few suggestions to get you in the mood.

MoviesThe Lives of Others, a brilliant movie about life in East Germany under the watchful eyes of the Stasi.

Good Bye Lenin!, a tragicomedy about life after the fall of the Berlin Wall.

And last but certainly not least, Doctor Strangelove, most likely the best known Cold War movie. A classic.

Postive ThingsThe deluxe edition of Twilight Struggle has made what was, for me, an already fantastic game even better. The optional new cards have nicely addressed the balance issues that were inherent in the original game, and the inclusion of the Chinese Civil War gives people another balanced option to try out. In addition, the Late War Scenario can be played in under an hour, so if you don't have a lot of time, you can still scratch your Cold War itch.

One of the things I like most about this game is the tight correlation of theme to mechanics. Particular stand outs for me are the DEFCON track affecting coups/realignments and the space race. The latter is brilliant not only because it gives an escape valve for a particularly nasty card, but also because it provides a way of replicating the propaganda war between the Americans and Soviets that makes sense within the game context.

Negative ThingsThis isn't a game for everyone. It can feel like a lot of the time you're spending so much time fending off your opponent's events, especially the ones your own hand, that instead of executing your plan you feel like you can only react to what your opponent is doing. The luck of the card draw can also make a game one sided; the consolation there is that those games will be mercifully short.

There's also no denying that knowing the cards in the game will make the experience a lot easier. If you know that Warsaw Pact can remove all those influence points you've put into Romania and Poland, maybe you'd have invested those ops points somewhere else. This is only really problematic if you're new player learning from someone with a lot of experience. My suggestion here is play the Late War Scenario a few times to get a hang of the mechanics, and then play a learning game with open hands to get an idea of the ebb and flow of the game.

In Conclusion - This One Goes to 11If you've been sitting on the fence about this game, now is definitely the time to jump in. The deluxe edition has top quality components, looks fabulous, and the new cards have more than adequately addressed the balance issues from the 2nd edition.

As I wrote in my original review of the 2nd edition, I'm passionate about this game. It has drama, it has tension, and it has enough luck to make it interesting. Even if I'm up by 15VP, I don't feel secure that victory is mine. This might drive some people crazy, but it's a huge draw for me.

Thanks for the review. I am glad the board has a linen finish. I very much look forward to receiving my copy even more.

To me, a "linen finish" means "we produced this in China," not "deluxe." First edition (warfrog - made in Germany) of Brass - high quality, no linen finish. Second edition (FRED - made in China), grainy linen finish all over every thing. First edition of Pandemic - incredible components. Second edition, printing moved to China, bam, linen finish (decent components, but a huge step down). First edition of Goa, not in China, no awful linen finish. Second ed. (China)... you get the idea.

Anyway, I know it's a feature for some buyers and that's great, but it's disheartening for me to see it become an industry standard and doubly so on this long-awaited deluxe edition of my favorite game.

Thanks for the review. I am glad the board has a linen finish. I very much look forward to receiving my copy even more.

To me, a "linen finish" means "we produced this in China," not "deluxe." First edition (warfrog - made in Germany) of Brass - high quality, no linen finish. Second edition (FRED - made in China), grainy linen finish all over every thing. First edition of Pandemic - incredible components. Second edition, printing moved to China, bam, linen finish (decent components, but a huge step down). First edition of Goa, not in China, no awful linen finish. Second ed. (China)... you get the idea.

Anyway, I know it's a feature for some buyers and that's great, but it's disheartening for me to see it become an industry standard and doubly so on this long-awaited deluxe edition of my favorite game.

I'm really not a big fan of the Pandemic board finish. When picking up the cards, that board shows every fingernail scratch on it when you look at it from the right angle. I agree some games don't need a linen finish but for TS I'll take mounted over thin cardboard any day.

For a game with lots of counters I wonder if the linen finish would keep the pieces in place and make them less prone to sliding around? I've played Brass and Goa but I can't remember if the board was linen or not.

I certainly know absolutely nothing about the politics and logistics of boardgame manufacturing. I admit it is certainly interesting. Nonetheless, running my hand across that grainy surface is a tactile delight

It seems GMT's "deluxe" standards are other's publisher's basic standards.I remember the 1st and 2nd editions with substandard components costing much more than this deluxe edition. I don't get it. Don't get me wrong, GMT's games are great. But I WOULD be saying their games are "awesome" if they could just improve the production quality of their games. Would I pay more for a great game with great components? Heck yes!

They explained everything in detail and at great length. After they finished I sat, despondent, contemplating a bleak and empty future. "I’m glad you’re depressed" said one. "It means you’ve understood the situation.”

Re: Deluxe Twilight Struggle: A Comprehensive Review

Great review.

two questions:

1. Do coup(s) from the new "Che" card count towards Mil ops?

2. Does the new "Our man in Tehran" allow a player to discard scoring cards?

They explained everything in detail and at great length. After they finished I sat, despondent, contemplating a bleak and empty future. "I’m glad you’re depressed" said one. "It means you’ve understood the situation.”

Re: Deluxe Twilight Struggle: A Comprehensive Review

leroy43 wrote:

muzfish4 wrote:

Great review.

two questions:

1. Do coup(s) from the new "Che" card count towards Mil ops?

2. Does the new "Our man in Tehran" allow a player to discard scoring cards?

I feel that his now mainstream legacy should have been prioritized over his military accomplishments.

I disagree, if only because the game is about events in a specific time frame. The Che event card mirrors, like the other events in the game, things that happened in their context, not how things are perceived now.

Great review, but a minor quibble. Evidence for imbalance isn't anecdotal, it's based on hundreds of games at the Wargameroom involving competitive players. The data is so strong in this regard that it's possible to argue why the game's imbalanced, but not if it is. There are threads that discuss this data in greater detail.

there are two errata cards up on GMTs website. but i do not know in what way to interpret that:either it is a help for those who already have their game to be able to play TILL GMT SENDS THEM THEIR CORRECTED REPLACEMENTS.

or Gmt expects players to repair the cards themselves? via sleeves or something like that? and buy a issue of their inhouse magazine perhaps to buy corrected cards?i am anxious what is indeed the answer to this conundrum...

There are now 3 card fixes at GMT's website. You can print paste-ups in the meantime or, if you purchased through GMT, you will be sent new cards in Feb. If you purchased it through a vendor, there will be a different method to send in for them.

...First edition of Goa, not in China, no awful linen finish. Second ed. (China)... you get the idea.

The first edition of Goa did have a linen finish, one of the most beautiful linen finishes of any game ever. The German board game manufactures know how to do it right.

The finish actually serves a useful purpose in making cards and components easier to handle and last longer. The Chinese linen finish is much less subtle and seems tacked on in order to make it look like a German made game rather than actually serving the intended purpose.

Recently I've noticed that while the Chinese finish is still far too pronounced it actually seems to be serving its intended purpose.